Meet Our Leaders

Greg Walkup

President

Greg Walkup is a lifelong dreamer, thinker, learner and tinkerer. A self described habitual job jumper he was surely in the right job when he met Kay while teaching at De La Salle Education Center in KCMO. He took his love for the poor and struggling everywhere, even to his sales jobs, where he admits he didn’t produce great results on paper but he sure had happy customers. Greg loves his two daughters and woodworking and is really looking forward to working on the Peace Garden Project.

Tammy Linningham

Vice President

Raised in the Baptist church in Tennessee, Tammy’s family then joined the Pentecostal denomination in KCMO when she was 14, where she played bass and founded a youth choir. In 1991 Tammy co-founded a non-denominational church. She has written and produced gospel songs, served as church administrator, and taught Sunday school both to youth and adults. In 2015, Tammy transitioned to the UCC and joined Peace Church. She is currently a member in discernment with the UCC and attends seminary at Central Seminary.
Tammy and her partner Royce are dedicated to serving God’s people; most recently, they put together small food sacks as an outreach ministry to those who stand on the corners of KC asking for help. Tammy seeks to mentor those on their journey in developing their relationship with God and spreading the Good News to all.

John Goodwin

Treasurer

John grew up in northeast Missouri and attended the First Baptist Church as a child. He worked in the field of telecommunications during his service in the U.S. Marine Corps and subsequent employment in Colorado. Following his move to Olathe, Kansas in 1989, John worked as a manufacturing supervisor prior to his current position as an insurance agent for Shelter Insurance Company. John has been married to his wife, Karen for 36 years and has 4 grown children and 3 grandchildren. He has been a Disciples of Christ member for over 23 years and has served on various committees involving building planning/maintenance, endowment funding and ordination.

Michelle Brightwell

Secretary

Michelle Brightwell was born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri. She graduated from Westminster College with Biology and English degrees. While at Westminster, she met Jonathan. They were married shortly after graduating. Michelle started her career with the Department of Veterans Affairs in Columbia, MO as a six-week temporary clerical worker. She has since spent over 20 years in the fields of Occupational Safety and Health and Environmental Program Management, currently working in the VA’s regional office. She and Jonathan have two children, Elizabeth (16) and Caleb (12). Her family started attending Peace two years ago, while looking for an open and affirming church in the heart of the city. She loves to read, listen to podcasts, and explore new coffee houses.

Rhea Hayes

Bio coming soon!

Elizabeth Duke

Elizabeth Duke was born and raised in Kansas City and grew up in St. Francis Xavier Catholic Parish. She spent 15 years in Chicago where she met Tom Kane at Loyola University where they both earned degrees in Computer Science. Elizabeth and Tom have been married for almost 27 years and have a 24 year old son, Sean. Elizabeth works as a technical presales manager for a software company called Informatica. If you want to know about data integration or data quality give her a call. When she is not working or traveling for work, Elizabeth loves to garden, read and attend concerts and the opera.

Bob Waechter

Bob is a founding member of Peace Church. Recently retired from a position in the Federal Government, Bob continues to perfect doing nothing. A long time advocate of veterans and their readjustment issues, Bob continues to reach out to homeless and disadvataged veterans via the twice annual Stand Down which brings the community together, in one drug free, violence free, location to assist veterans in ridding the barriers that prohibit them from living a more productive, fulfilling life–a life off the streets. He has been recognized for his advocacy with veterans and was instrumental in the building of the Kansas City Vietnam Veterans Memorial in 1986.